Abstract:

Worldwide rodent pests are of significant economic and health importance. Controlling rodent pests will,
therefore, not only benefit food security but also human and animal health. While rodent pests are most
often chemically controlled, there is increased interest in biological control through avian predation. A
rich body of research has addressed the impact of avian predators on wild rodent populations, but little
is known about the effectiveness of avian predators as biological control agents of rodent pests in agricultural
systems. In this study, we systematically reviewed research that investigated different aspects
of avian predation on rodent pest populations in order to increase our understanding of the impact
and effectiveness of avian predation on rodent pests. Several avian predators (Tyto alba, Elanus axillaris,
Falco tinnunculus, Falco cenchroides, Bubo bengalensis, Buteo rufinus) were commonly cited in the biological
control of rodents; however, barn owls (T. alba) are the most cited species (86% of studies). We found
some support that the use of avian predators produced positive, measurable effects where increased
presence of avian predators tended to lower rodent pest numbers, resulting in lower crop damage.
However, our review highlighted several shortcomings related to research on avian predation of rodent
pests. First, research concerning rodent pest control through avian predation was limited (1.86 articles
per year). Secondly, we found that studies lack statistical rigor to detect and measure change in rodent
pest species abundance. Finally, the majority of studies were short term and therefore not able to evaluate
long term sustainable rodent pest population suppression. We suggest that current shortcomings
could be adequately addressed with control-treatment studies that quantitatively investigate the effects